Re-visiting the past...

Do you believe in déjà vu? It seems to be happening to me more and more these days. And especially this past month... It seems like everywhere I go I recognise parts of it, and sometimes I even know what is going to happen...

This is probably caused by the fact that I have indeed been to most of these places before... A very unsettling experience for someone that has been thriving on novel and unknown places for the last two years almost...

On with the story anyway....

So myself and Allan did our little road trip, heading north to the Gold Coast (been there before) via Giraween national park (been there before...). We met up with some of my friends and some of his friends in Brisbane, and generally had a good time... We then headed south back to Sydney via Byron Bay (been there... you get the idea...).

Road trip over we spent a couple of days in Sydney, most of which I spent repairing the van from Allans over zealous driving, and then flew over to Bangkok...

I like Thailand... I like it a lot... We didn't spend very long there though. One day in Bangkok (where we saw no sign of the troubles that are so widely reported in the news), then a train to Nong Kai, one day in Nong Kai; we went to the statue park there, which hadn't changed much since the last time I was there (before and after). Still well worth a visit though. Then we crossed over the border into Laos.

In Laos we spent a couple of days in Vientiane, which was nice. They have some nice temples there, and we got to see a buddhist monk baptism... or something like that. What I like about Laos (well, one of the things) is the baguettes, a hangover from the French colonisation, so we ate lots of sandwiches here.

After Vientiane we travelled north to Vang Vieng. This is a traveller mainstay on the Laos circuit, and as such hadn't changed even slightly in the 4 years since the last time I'd been there. Even to the extent that all the bars had exactly the same identical menus and even had the same Friends DVDs running on loops... One thing that was different was that my sister was there!

Another thing that had changed was the tubing experience... This is an essential part of the Vang Vieng experience (except for Allan who missed it due to feeling "a bit ill"). When i did it 4 years ago it was a simple experience, drifting down the river, visiting a few bars, enjoying the scenery... Now the top end of the river has turned into a resort style place! Bars either side of the river, pumping out music, and huge swings and slides for drunken travellers to abuse... It was quite fun, but I can't help but feel that part of the point of floating down the river has been erased... Here is the before and after pics...

After the hedonism of Vang Vieng it was quite nice to visit Luang Prabang again. Not much had changed here (before and after) but it was still a beautiful city, and a nice place to spend a couple of days... Worth noting was the Royal Palace, which I hadn't visited before...

After a couple of days in Luang Prabang it was time to move on. We took the slow boat to Huay-Xai on the Thai border. This trip took two days, with a stop-over in Pak Beng. Pak Beng was exactly as I left it 4 years ago (before and after).

One night in Huay-Xai and we crossed the border into Thailand. Some immigration checks and we were free to find our bus out of there. We took a bus to Chiang Mai from the border. A six hour journey, which was reasonably comfortable. It was nice being back in Thailand again, and able to go into 7-11 and buy snack foods without being ripped off.

Of course Chiang Mai is the biggest source of déjà vu. I have spent over 6 weeks in Chiang Mai, all told, and really like it here. If there is one place that I could see myself living outside the UK it is here. We vsited my friend Jangiraj, and discovered that I am used as a model in her advertising! We bumped into an old friend that Nam and myself knew from a farm in Australia, and had some drinks with him.

We also visited an elephant camp, and Doi Suthep (before and after).

Which brings us pretty much up to date. The next plan is to head south and re-visit Koh Tao, where hopefully I will find it similar to how I left it (one of the most beautiful places I have ever been).

Until next time....

Thailand!

Wow!

Its been a long time since I posted anything!

I can only blame Thailand for being so entertaining that I haven't had time to post...

This is only partly true; I have had time, but somehow being in Thailand makes even doing nothing into a pleasurable experience! Thus my addiction to 2 hour massages!

So first I think I'll tell you about leaving Nepal. I have found that travel in Nepal is always a fraught experience. Buses breaking down, and being transformed into saunas as water is poured over the extremely overheated engine. Traffic jams that seem to stretch as far as the eye can see, and are made constantly worse by people trying to overtake, and blocking the little traffic that is trying to come the other way...

So anyway, I kinda hoped that the plane journey as i left Nepal would be less... incident packed. After all, if the engine starts smoking when you're 8000 meters up, it isn't a simple case of stopping in a lay-by and pouring water on it until it cools down... Nepal had one last surprise though.

As we waited in the departures lounge (I was only slightly worried that our flight didn't appear on the departure board), the shuttle bus parked up outside, ready to take us away from the lounge and towards the plane. People started filing on board. I waited, knowing that we would all be seated eventually, and having gotten to a good point in my book. So the first bus filled up, the doors closed, and it pulled away, and waited 10 meters down the road. Another bus pulled up, and much to every ones confusion... including the airport staff... it promptly pulled away again without letting anyone on board.

Confusion reigned for a while. The airport staff got into a little huddle, before pointing at the plane that was 50 meters away on the tarmac, and telling us to walk to it... the result being that we arrive at the plane before all of the people that had been packed onto the bus. Why we couldn't have all just walked to the plane is beyond me... I think they like to spice up travel in Nepal!

Since then I have been in Thailand. I have to say that I love it here. The people are so friendly. The women are so consistently hot. The scenery is so beautiful. The food is great. Just like the last time I was here, I am considering my options for moving here....

On the subject of the hot women. There is something very refreshing about the way that the Thai people are comfortable with being good looking. They don't seem to be overly self conscious about it. It starts at a young age... the children are almost without exception cute. And if you point a camera at them they will quite happily pull a little pose making them even cuter. The school kids are dressed sexlessly, and this is accepted without question. It is only once people leave school that they start to dress sexy. This makes a refreshing change to back home where young children are sometimes dressed in adult sexy clothes.

I have lots more to write about Thailand, but I may just leave it at that for now... there seems to be a darker underbelly to the country, that you don't see on first inspection. The ex-pats that live here seem to be split into those that still love it and wouldn't go anywhere else, and those that constantly grumble about undefined things, generally drinking every night. You find at least one of these grumbling ex-pats in every bar, but they are never that clear about what is wrong with the place... maybe it needs further investigation....

(I suspect that the grumbling ex-pats are those that have taken a "bar girl" as their partner, and been disappointed when she turns out to be only after the money...)

Travel Itinerary

Thought that I'd post a rough itinerary of where I will be, and when.

If anyone reading will be in roughly the same places, at roughly the same times, we can see about maybe hooking up...

August 6th I fly to Cyprus. This is the only date that is set in stone at the moment.

I will be spending roughly 2 weeks in Cyprus (mostly in the Northern Turkish part). I plan to do lots of diving here. And lounging by the pool, and other such things...

Then I will fly over to Egypt (or possibly get a boat over), and spend 2 weeks in Egypt. In this time I will be visiting the Pyramids, possibly doing a bit of salsa, going to the Red Sea to do more scuba diving, and meeting up with some good friends I have over there...

After all of this excitement I will fly back to Cyprus, and do more diving,
and hanging by the pool, and whatnot, until the 12th of September when there is a Salsa convention starting (http://www.salsajamincyprus.com/).

Once the dancing has all finished I will be flying on to India. I'm not sure where I will be, but I plan to have a kind of flying visit of India, taking in a couple of towns for a couple of days and then moving pretty swiftly onto Nepal.

In Nepal I will be doing some trekking. I want to see the Himalayas from close up, and maybe I'll find a Buddhist Monastery or something and do some meditation on the top of the world. Nepal could take up to a month, and is one of the places I'm looking forwards to seeing the most...

After my calming time in Nepal I will be flying on to Thailand. Really there is too much I want to see in Thailand. I could probably spend 6 months just there, but among the locations I would like to get to are Chiang Mai, Pai, Bangkok (to visit some friends I made last time I was there. You know who you are ;^), Koh Tao, and a couple of other islands.

Somehow I have to fit all of this in before the 13th of November, when there is a salsa convention starting in Bangkok (http://www.salsabangkok.com/).

Once this is over I will be meeting a friend, and travelling with her to Cambodia. There I'm mostly interested in seeing Angkor Wat. But it will be interesting to see the culture and all that, and see how it contrasts to Thailand.

I'll probably pass back through Thailand after this, and on to Malaysia. Take in Kuala Lumpur and visit some good friends I have over there. Then check out some of their beaches (and maybe fit in a bit of salsa while I'm here).

Then on from Malaysia to Indonesia, where the plan is pretty much the same as in Malaysia. Visit some friends, see Jakarta, and then Bali, check out some beaches and just see what happens. It will be Christmas around this time, so I will either be spending Christmas and new year either in Thailand, Malaysia or Indonesia. I'm not sure where yet, I'll just have to play it by ear...

Anyway, I have to fit all of this in in time to get to Sydney in time for the 29th of January (in fact, probably the 28th in time for my birthday!), which is when and where the 3rd salsa convention of my travels kicks off (http://www.sydneysalsacongress.com.au/). I'm hoping a good Australian friend will join me for this.

I think Allan will be joining me sometime about here, and we will travel around Australia, possibly doing a bit of work here and there (i already have my work and travel visa, and an Aussie phone number!). My Australian Visa lasts for a year, so I will take full advantage of this, and then depending on funds, I will see what I want to do next....

(But if I do have lots of money still at this point New Zealand looks nice, then South America for Mardi Gras and finally South Africa for the world cup. But we'll have to see about that...)